Reid's shady secret land deal behind Nev. dispute?

Anthony Martin
Conservative Examiner
4/11/2014

A familiar name in Washington politics that is emerging as a potential central figure in the Nevada cattle dispute is none other than U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., Senate Majority Leader. Reid figures into the scandal in at least two ways.

According to radio host and Fox News Channel contributor Dana Loesch, Sen. Reid moved the boundaries of the original habitat of the endangered desert tortoise in order to accommodate a development by Reid’s top political donor, Harvey Whittemore. But why is this of such vital importance?

Protecting the original habitat of the endangered tortoise was the supposed primary reason for the federal land seizure of that portion of Nevada to begin with. But that motivational factor was thrown out the window in a hurry when Reid decided to help his cash cow with his development project on that land. Reid, thus, changed the boundaries of the habitat and moved the tortoise to the new area.

But this is not the only way that Reid is directly connected to the growing Nev. cattle scandal…

…The Bureau of Land Management, whose director was Sen. Harry Reid’s (D-Nev.) former senior adviser, has purged documents from its web site stating that the agency wants Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy’s cattle off of the land his family has worked for over 140 years in order to make way for solar panel power stations.

“Non-Governmental Organizations have expressed concern that the regional mitigation strategy for the Dry Lake Solar Energy Zone utilizes Gold Butte as the location for offsite mitigation for impacts from solar development, and that those restoration activities are not durable with the presence of trespass cattle,” the document states…

…During our visit, a number of local and state political candidates stepped forward and introduced themselves to the Bundys. In rural areas, support for the Bundy family is very high—in the urban centers not so much.

Two state legislators were also in attendance including Representative Crescent Hardy and Assemblywoman Michelle Fiore. This situation has caught the attention of leaders in several western states where federal authority over public lands has been problematic at best.

Both elected officials reminded the crowd that peaceful assembly would sway the court of public opinion more than rowdy or antagonistic behavior. This came on the heels of a highly publicized tussle that saw several individuals roughed up or tazed after confronting and shoving BLM personnel.

As the lawmakers were finishing their remarks, word came that three more Bundy family members had just been arrested 40 miles away at Moapa Beach. With that news, the majority of the crowd jumped into their vehicles and headed out.

It may not be an actual standoff yet, but the tensions between embattled Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy and the federal Bureau of Land Management are making waves well beyond Clark County. This is much more than a pissing contest between a dissident rancher and a dogmatic federal bureaucracy. It has far-reaching implications for every one of us regarding whether government is our servant or our master. If it goes sideways, it’s likely that all of us will pay a significant price in terms of our personal freedoms…

The son of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), Rory Reid, is the primary representative for ENN Energy Group, a Chinese energy company seeking to build a $5 billion solar panel plant on a 9,000-acre Clark County desert plot in Laughlin, Nevada.

ENN scored big when Clark County commissioners unanimously voted to sell the Chinese company the public land for just $4.5 million, despite the fact that it was appraised at $38.6 million.

Sen. Reid has been one of ENN’s biggest supporters, having recruited the company during a 2011 trip to China. According to Reuters, last month Sen. Reid tried to “pressure Nevada’s largest power company, NV Energy, to sign up as ENN’s first customer.”…